Can-end-curling machine



o .1s,192s 1,557,162

, G. w. HEDSTROM CAN END CURLING MACHINE Filed D90. 19, 1924 3Sheets-Sheet 1 G. W. BEDS TRON CAN END CURLING MACHINE A Filed Deb. 19,1924 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Ill,

Oct 13, 1925-' 1,557,162

G. W. HEDSTROM CAN END CURLING MACHINE Filed D00, 19, 1924 3Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented Oct. 13, 1925.

UNITED STATES GUSTAV W. HEDSTROM, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

CAN-END-CUR-LING MACHINE.

Application filed December 19, 1924. Serial No. 756,871.

To all whom it may con-061%.

Be it known that I, GUSTAV IV. HEDSTROM, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Can-End-CurlingMachines; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear,and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, and to the characters of reference marked. thereon, which forma part of this specification.

This invention relates to improvements in curling machines for curvingin or curling the flanges of sheet metal can ends preparatory todelivering the curled ends. to a seaming machine.

Among the objects of the invention is to produce what may be termed acontinuously operative curling machine wherein the head which travelstherethrough is constantly advancing from the receiving end, through thecurling mechanism, to and away from the discharge end.

Another object of the invention is to produce a machine of thischaracter which is adjustable to can ends of different diameters by theready manipulation of simple adjusting means. I

A further object of the invention is to produce a. machine of thischaracter in which the can end flange is subjected to a long length ofcurling contact with the curling rolls, as compared -to the length ofpath through which the, can ends are moved.

Another object of the invent-ion is to produce a machine wherein the canends are stabilized while passing through the curling operation so as toavoid danger of the can ends springing away from the curl-. ing rolls.

Other objects of the invention are to further improve, simplify, andrender compact curling machines, and the invention consists in thecombination and arrangement of the elements shown in the drawings andpointed out in the specification, and is set forth in the appendedclaims.

As shown in the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan view, partially broken away, showing a can end curlerembodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a transverse section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a detail section onthe line 1 -4 v of Fig. 1.

Figs. 5 and 6 illustrate, respectively, the diametric sections of thecan ends as they leave the forming press and as they leave the curlingmachine.

As shown in the drawings, 10 designates the bed plate of the machinewhich is inclined at a sharp angle to the horizontal section and issupported on or is formed part of a base casting of suitable forma tion.The machine usually is located at the discharge end of a press, and canends C (Fig 5) are delivered from the press through the chute 11 to thecurling machine. The can ends, after the flanges 0 have been turnedinwardly to constitute curl 0 of the end C, shown in Fig. 1, aredirected to a pair of lifting screws 12, 12 that are fixed to and rotatewith shafts 13, 13, mounted ,in suitable brackets 14 at the delivery endof the machine, and are turned in suitable direction to raise the canends as they are delivered to the lower ends of the lifting screws. Saidshafts 13 are fixed to and driven by in-, termeshing spur gears 15,which are disposed on the lower end of the upper face of the bed plate10, and are driven in the direction indicated by the arrows in Fig. 1,by a gear drive hereinafter to be described; the curled can ends beingguided in upward movement by the upright guide bars 16.

The elements of the curling mechanism embrace, a rotative ring member19, formed on its inner periphery with a curling groove 20, and anop-positely'rotative curling head 21 whose axis of rotation lies withinsaid ring and is eccentric to the axis of rotation of the latter, and isprovided with a like curling groove 22 to oppose the groove 20 ofthering 19. In the embodiment of the invention here shown, the curlingring 19 is supported on a gear ring 23 which is seated and turns on theupper face of the bed plate 10. Said curling ring may be fas tened inany suitable manner to the. gear ring by which the latter is supportedand with which it turns. The curling ring is made of hard steel, whilethe gear can be made of cast iron. As shown, the inner side i of thegear has an annular rebate to receive the outer, lower peripheralportion of the curling ring; and said curling ring can be sweated on orotherwise fixed rigidly to said gear ring. 2 1 designates a partoylin'dric hold down guide which is continuous from the receiving end ofthe machine to near the discharge end thereof. It is rigidly fastened,as by the screws 25, to the bed plate. Said guide has an inwardlydirected flange 26 which lies over that part of the gear ring radiallyexterior to the curling ring and serves two purposes, to-wit: to holddown said gear ring on the bed plate, and to form an annular guide face27 to engage and center the curling ring and gear ring in the rotationalmovements of the latter.

The curling head 21 is fixedly supported on the upper end of a shaft 28that is rotatively mounted in a bearing sleeve 29 which extends upwardlythrough the bed plate and a bar the horizontal portion 30 of a can endguide which, with the downwardly inclined delivery end 31 and theupwardly inclined discharge end 32, constitutes the guide support for acan end as it passes through the machine. The curling groove 22 of thehead 21 lies just above the horizontal portion 30 of the can end guide,as shown in Figs. 2 and 3. The curling groove 20 of the curling ring 19is in the same plane with the curling groove 22 of the head 21. Thedriving shaft 28 for the curling head 21 is driven from a drive shaft 33mounted in a suitable horizontal bearing in the base casting through abevel gear 34 fixed to the drive shaft a bevel gear 35 fixed to an intermediate shaft 36, and a spur gear 37 which meshes with a pinion 38 onsaid shaft 28. The gear ring 23 which carries the curler ring 19 islikewise driven from the spur gear 37 through a pinion 39 that is fixedto the lower end of a vertical shaft 40, and the upper end of whichcarries a pinion 41 that meshes with theteeth of said gear ring 23.Thereby the curling head 21 and curling ring 19 are driven in unison inopposite directions, but with the curling head traveling at aconsiderably greater speed than that of the curling ring.

The feed chute 21 is flanged to hold the can ends properly in line, andthe down- Wardly inclined part 31 of the can end guide support can bemade an integral continuation of the chute 11, and the flanges of saiddownwardly inclined part of the can head guide are formed to provideinwardly turned flanges 42 so as to properly deliver the can ends to thecurling zone of the machine or, where the flanges 0 of the can ends areturned inwardly, to form can end curls c. 4

It will be noted by inspection of Fig. '2 that the downwardly inclineddelivery end 31 of the can end guide terminates below a plane whichintersects the curling grooves 19 and 22 of the curling ring and curlinghead, respectively, so that the flanges 0 of the can ends interlockunder the upper walls of said curling grooves when the can end reachesthe narrowed width of the throat between the curling head and ringthrough which the can ends pass. By reason of the fact that the flangesof the can ends are engaged with the walls of the curling grooves ofboth the curling ring and curling head, and of the further fact that thecurling head has a peripheral speed considerably greater than that ofthe curling ring, the movement of the can end through the curling zonewill be slightly halted, but is never brought to rest in the advancedotted line position shown in Fig. 1. Thereby the can end flanges arecaused to travel in engagement with the walls of the curling grooves,while the can ends are rapidly turning about forwardly shifting centers.

After the passage of a can end through the narrowest part of the throat,said can end passes into an enlarged width of the throat, due to thefact that the axis of rotation of the curling head is eccentric withrespect to that of the curling ring, and by reason of the tendency ofgravity to cause the heads to drop in a general direction towards thecurling head and against a curved guide 13, the

completely curled can end is quickly delivered from the horizontalportion of the guide plate on to and over the upwardly inclineddischarge portion. By reason of the release of the curled can end, dueto its passage into t'he enlarged part of the throat or guide and, byreason ofthe general inclination of the path of the curled can end awayfrom the curling zone, the curled can ends are delivered by gravity overthe upwardly inclined guides 42 and above the edge of the curling ringinto the space between the lifting screws 12. From thence the curled canends are elevated away from the curling mechanism in the form of a stackwhich: is bounded by the upstanding guide bar 16 before referred to.

The machine is adapted to be adjusted to operate on can ends ofdifferent diameters by adjusting the axis of rotation of the. curlerhead 21 towards and from the center of the curler ring 19. This may beeffected by providing the bed plate 10, with an arcuate slot 44concentric to the axis'of the shaft 36, and carrying said curler headshaft 28, its bearing, and toothed pinion through the medium of an arm45 that is pivoted on the shaft 36 and carries at its inner end thecurler head and its bearing and supporting appurtenances, as best shownin Fig. 1. The said arm 45 is locked in adjusted positions by a screwbolt 46 which is adapted to extend through an arcuate slot in a lug 47integral with the arm 45, said screw bolt to be threaded into a suitableprojection on the bed plate 10. The slot in said lug 47 is concentric tothe axis of the: shaft 36 sothat thereby in all positions of the arm 45,and corresponding adjustments of the curler head, the curler headdriving pinion 38 will be in driving mesh with the spur gear 37.

When adjusting the machine to can ends of different diameters,thesupports for the guide bar 16 can be adjusted to shift said barsradially towards and from the center of the stack. Two of the guide bars16 are supported on the inner short arms 48 of the brackets 14, whichlatter have slotted adj usting lugs 49 through whiclr extend screw bolts50. The other guide bar is supported on a slotted foot lug 51, which isheld in place by a screw bolt 52. It will be noted from an inspection ofFig. 1 that the spur 'gears 15 for driving the lifting screws 12 meshwith the teeth of the ring 23, and that the adjustment provided for thebrackets of the lifting screws is such as to maintain the spur gears 15always in mesh with the gear 23.

'From what has been said, it will be observed that when the machine isproperly set to the delivery end of a can end stamping machine, saidends are delivered directly into the trough or guide 11, and from.thence are directed by gravity to the receiving side of the throat ofthe machine, and by the engagement of the peripheries of the flangedends with the oppositely rotative curling head and ring said can endsare caused to rapidly turn on their axes while said axes of rotation arebeing continually advanced, due to the differential, peripheral speedsof the Walls of the inner and outer curling grooves. It will also benoted that, by reason of the greater diameter of the curling ring, ascompared to the curling head, the edge of the can end underlaps theupper wall of the ring curling groove for a considerably greaterdistance than it underlaps the upper wall of the cur ing head groove.This stabilizes the passage ofthe can head through the machine, inasmuchas it 'givesa substantial three point bearing against raisingof the canend when the greatest thrust is imposed on the metal of said end as itpasses through the smallest width of the throat. It will also beobserved that thediameter of the curling head groove is such as to causethe edge of a can end to be released from said'groove more rapidly thanthe ring curler groove, and by reason of this release the can end willbe allowed to vibrate in its plane due to the combined action of gravityand its sudden release from the rapidly rotating curling head. Thiscapability' of the can end to adjust itself, and

the inclination of the end to; gravitate toward the outlet between thelifting screws 12 effectively releases the can end periphery from theoverhanging wallof the outer curling groove ring and permits itto passreadily out from under the overhanging curler ring over theupwardlyinclined part 32 of the can end guide and across the upper face of thegear ring of said lifting screws.

In order to provide adjustment for large variations of can enddiameters, two or more curling heads or elements 21 may be supplied witha machine, and such adjustment may be eflected by the removal of onehead and the substitution of another head. The final or delicateadjustment may be effected by varying the eccentricity of the axis ofthe head to that of the curling ring.

It will be furthermore observed that the inclosing curling ring orelement 19 is a full circle and is a permanent part of the machine.Therefore, the curling face'of the ring is nonvarying, except as tousualwear.

The circle establishes a fixed outer curling abutment for the can ends,and alladjustments for different diameters can be effected by the simpleexpedientof substituting the inner curling head or adjusting it to'greater or less eccentricity to the outer curlin'g ring.

I claim as my invention: i

1. A can end curling machine including two relatively rotating curlingelements, one enclosed by and eccentric to'the other, the shortestdistance between said elements being approximately equal to the diameterof a can end to be curled, and there being curling grooveslocatedrespectively on the inner side of th outer element and on theperiphery of the inner element.

2. A can end curling machine including two relatively rotatable curlingelements, one enclosed by and eccentric to the other, said curlingelements having curling grooves in their opposed faces, the shortestdistance between said elements being approximately equal to the diameterof a can end to be curled, and the parts being so proportioned andarranged that a can end in moving between said elements is equallyreleased therefrom after passing the line of nearest ap preach betweensaid elements. 3. A can end curling machine comprising a rotatable ring,a rotatable circular head much smaller in diameter than the ringarranged within the latter and rotatable about an axis eccentric to thea'xis ofrotation of the ring, the shortest distance between said headand said ring being approximately equal to the diameter of a can end tobe rolled, the opposing faces of the'he'ad and the ring being shaped tocurl the edge "of a can end passing between thesame.

i. A can end curling machine including two relatively rotatable curlingelements, one enclosed by and eccentric to the other, and means drivingsaid elements in opposite directions. I 1

5. A can end curling machine comprising two rotative curlingelements,one enclosed by and with its axis of rotation eccentric to that of theother and being very small in diameter relatively to the other, and gearmeans for rotating said elements to drive the enclosed element at ahigher speed than the enclosing element.

6. A can end curling machine comprising two rotativecurling elements,one enclosed by and with itsaxis of rotation eccentric to that of theother, and means to vary the eccentricity of the axes of rotation ofsaid elements to thereby adjust, the machine to can ends of differentdiameters.

7. A can end curling machinecomprising two rotative curling elements,one enclosed by and with its axis of rotation eccentric to that of theother, means to detachably fix the inner curling element to its rotativesupport, and meansto vary the eccentricity of the axes of rotation ofsaid elements to thereby adjust the machine to can ends of differentdiameters.

8. A can' end curling machine comprising two rotative curling elements,one enclosed by and with its axis of rotation eccentric to that of theother, and means to adjust the machine to can ends of differentdiameters by eccentric adjustment of one of the curling elementsrelatively to the other.

9. .A can end curling machine comprising two rotative curling elements,one enclosing and eccentric to the other, with opposing curling groovesrespectively on the outer and inner peripheries thereof, said elementsbeing arranged to form between them a restricted throat to constitutethe curling zone of th machine.

10. A can end curling machine comprising two rotative curling elements,one enclosing and eccentric to the other with opposing curling groovesrespectively on the outer and inner peripheries thereof, said elementsbe ing arranged to form between them a restricted throat to constitutethe curling zone of the machine, and a guide to support a can end atsaid throat and having oblique entering and discharge portions torespectively direct a can end to said throat and to raise it away fromthe curling zone.

11. A can end curling machine comprising two rotative curling elements,one enclosing and eccentric to the other, with opposing curling groovesrespectively on the outer and inner peripheries thereof, said elementsbeing arranged to form between them arestricted throat to constitute thecurling zone of the machine, and means whereby the can ends whenreleased from the inner element is caused to be directed by gravity to acentrally disposed discharge.

12. A can end curling machinecomprising two rotative curling elements,one a head and the other a solid ring enclosing and cocentric to saidhead, with opposing curling grooves to engage the flange of a can endand'also arranged to form between them a restricted throat to constitutethe curling zone of the machine, said ring and head be-v ing disposed atan outward and downward inclination to permit can ends to be fed bygravity to and released from said curling zone, a

13. A can end curling machine comprising two rotative curling elements,one enclosing and eccentric to the other, with opposing curling grooves,and arranged to form therebetween a restricted throat to constitute the.

curling zone of the machine, said ring and head being .disposed at anoutward and downward inclination to permit can heads to be fed to andreleased from said zone by gravity, and means for driving said elementsin opposite directions with the inner elements rotative at the higherspeed.

14. A can end curling machine comprising a forwardly and downwardlyinclined base, curling elements comprising a solid ring and an enclosed,eccentrically disposed head rota-tively supported above said base, andhaving opposing curling grooves to engage and operate on the peripheralcan end flange.

15. A can end curling machine comprising a downwardly and forwardlyinclined base, curling elements comprising an outer ring and an innerhead, provided with opposing curling grooves in the same plane, with thehead disposed eccentric to the ring, and acan end guide having a centralportion parallel to said plane to support the can end at the nearestapproach of the curling elements.

.16. A can end curling machine comprising a downwardly and forwardlyinclined base, curling elements comprising an outer ring and an innerhead, provided with opposing curling grooves in thesame plane, with thehead disposed eccentric to the ring, and a can end guide having acentral portion parallel to said plane to support the can end at thenearest approach of the curling elements, said guide being formed withreceiving and discharging port-ions, the latter leading to the dischargeend of'the machine.

17 A can end curling machine comprising a downwardly and forwardlyinclined base, curlingelements comprising an outer ringand an innerhead, provided with opposing curling groo-vesin the same plane, with thehead disposed eccentric to the ring, a can end guide having a centralportion parallel to said plane to support the can end at the nearestapproach of the curling elements, said guide being formed with receivingand discharging portions, the latter leading to the discharge end of themachine, and an automatic can end stacking mechanism to receive curledcan ends from the machine.

18. The combination with inner and outer curling elements, one enclosingand eccentric to the other, and a can end guide to guide can ends to andfrom the curling zone located at the side of the inner curling elementat which the curling elements most nearly approach each other and tosupport said can ends at said curling zone.

19. The combination with inner and outer curling elements, one enclosingand eccentric to the other and'having opposing curling grooves in acommon plane, and a can end guide to guide can ends to and from thecurling zone located at the side of the inner curling element at whichthe curling elements most nearly approach each other, said guidecomprising oblique feeding and discharge portions and an intermediateportion in the plane of said curling grooves, the outlet end of saidguide being diverted towards the vertical axes of the curling elementsto produce quick release of the can ends from the curling elements.

20. The combination with inner and outer curling elements, one enclosingand eccentric to the other, and a can end guide to guide a can end toand from the curling zone located at the side of the inner curlingelement at which the curling elements most nearly approach each other,said guide comprising delivery and discharge end portions and anintermediate offset central portion, the latter located to support canends at the curling zone.

21. A. can end curling machine comprising a downwardly and forwardlyinclined base, rotative curling elements, one enclosing and eccentric tothe other and having opposing curling grooves in a plane parallel to theplane of the said groove, and a gear ring to support the outer curlingelement and having acircular guide to hold the outer curling element ina. fixed axis of rotation.

22. A can end curling machine comprising a downwardly and forwardlyinclined base, rotative curling elements, one enclosing and eccentric tothe other and having opposing curling grooves in a plane parallel to theplane of the said groove, a gear ring to support the outer curlingelement and a do-wnholding circular element for said outer curlingelement and said gear ring fixed to and furnishing a centering bearingfor said outer element.

23. A can end curling machine comprising a downwardly and forwardlyinclined base, curling elements, one enclosing and eccentric to theother and having opposing curling grooves, a gear ring fixed to andsupporting the outer curling element, and a grooved guide fixed to saidbase and having an inwardly extending flange to overlap said gear ringand curling element and furnishing a centering bearing for said outercurling element.

24. A. can end curling machine comprising two rotative curling elements,having their diameters transverse to the direction of travel of the canends through the machine arranged horizontally, one enclosed by and withits axis of rotation eccentric to that of the other, a guide support forthe can ends to direct said ends to and from the curling zone betweensaid elements, and screw threaded can end lifter means at the dischargeend of the guide to receive and lift the curled can ends in a stack.

In witness whereof I claim the foregoing as my invention, I hereuntoappend my signature this 3rd day of December, 1924.

GUSTAV W. HEDSTROM.

